Kuwait




                                 Geography


Location:
     Middle East, at the head of the Persian Gulf, between Iraq and Saudi
     Arabia
Map references:
     Africa, Middle East, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
     17,820 sq km
land area:
     17,820 sq km
comparative area:
     slightly smaller than New Jersey
Land boundaries:
     total 464 km, Iraq 242 km, Saudi Arabia 222 km
Coastline:
     499 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf:
     not specified
territorial sea:
     12 nm
International disputes:
     in April 1991 Iraq officially accepted UN Security Council Resolution
     687, which demands that Iraq accept the inviolability of the boundary
     set forth in its 1963 agreement with Kuwait, ending earlier claims to
     Bubiyan and Warbah islands, or to all of Kuwait; the 20 May 1993 final
     report of the UN Iraq/Kuwait Boundary Demarcation Commission was
     welcomed by the Security Council in Resolution 833 of 27 May 1993,
     which also reaffirmed that the decisions of the commission on the
     boundary were final, bringing to a completion the official demarcation
     of the Iraq-Kuwait boundary; Iraqi officials still refuse to
     unconditionally recognize Kuwaiti sovereignty of the inviolability of
     the UN demarcated border; ownership of Qaruh and Umm al Maradim
     islands disputed by Saudi Arabia
Climate:
     dry desert; intensely hot summers; short, cool winters
Terrain:
     flat to slightly undulating desert plain
Natural resources:
     petroleum, fish, shrimp, natural gas
Land use:
arable land:
     0%
permanent crops:
     0%
meadows and pastures:
     8%
forest and woodland:
     0%
other:
     92%




Irrigated land:
     20 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
     some of world's largest and most sophisticated desalination facilities
     provide much of the water; air and water pollution; desertification
natural hazards:
     NA
international agreements:
     party to - Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the
     Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection; signed, but not
     ratified - Biodiversity, Endangered Species, Marine Dumping
Note:
     strategic location at head of Persian Gulf


                                  People


Population:
     1,819,322 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
     5.24% (1994 est.)
note:
     this rate reflects the continued post-Gulf crisis return of nationals
     and expatriates
Birth rate:
     29.43 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
     2.37 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
     25.35 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
     12.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
     74.99 years
male:
     72.83 years
female:
     77.25 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
     4 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
     Kuwaiti(s)
adjective:
     Kuwaiti
Ethnic divisions:
     Kuwaiti 45%, other Arab 35%, South Asian 9%, Iranian 4%, other 7%
Religions:
     Muslim 85% (Shi'a 30%, Sunni 45%, other 10%), Christian, Hindu, Parsi,
     and other 15%
Languages:
     Arabic (official), English widely spoken
Literacy:
     age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)




total population:
     73%
male:
     77%
female:
     67%
Labor force:
     566,000 (1986)
by occupation:
     services 45.0%, construction 20.0%, trade 12.0%, manufacturing 8.6%,
     finance and real estate 2.6%, agriculture 1.9%, power and water 1.7%,
     mining and quarrying 1.4%
note:
     70% of labor force non-Kuwaiti (1986)


                                Government


Names:
conventional long form:
     State of Kuwait
conventional short form:
local long form:
     Dawlat al Kuwayt
local short form:
     Al Kuwayt
Digraph:
     KU
Type:
     nominal constitutional monarchy
Capital:
Administrative divisions:
     5 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al 'Ahmadi, Al
     Jahrah, Al Kuwayt, Hawalli, Al Farwaniyah
Independence:
     19 June 1961 (from UK)
National holiday:
     National Day, 25 February (1948)
Constitution:
     16 November 1962 (some provisions suspended since 29 August 1962)
Legal system:
     civil law system with Islamic law significant in personal matters; has
     not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
     adult males who resided in Kuwait before 1920 and their male
     descendants at age 21
note:
     only 10% of all citizens are eligible to vote
Executive branch:
chief of state:
     Amir Shaykh JABIR al-Ahmad al-Jabir Al Sabah (since 31 December 1977)




head of government:
     Prime Minister and Crown Prince SAAD al-Abdallah al-Salim Al Sabah
     (since 8 February 1978); Deputy Prime Minister SABAH al-Ahmad al-Jabir
     Al Sabah (since 17 October 1992)
cabinet:
     Council of Ministers; appointed by the Prime Minister and approved by
     the Amir
Legislative branch:
     unicameral
National Assembly (Majlis al-umma):
     dissolved 3 July 1986; new elections were held on 5 October 1992 with
     a second election in the 14th and 16th constituencies held February
     1993
Judicial branch:
     High Court of Appeal
Political parties and leaders:
     none
Other political or pressure groups:
     small, clandestine leftist and Shi'a fundamentalist groups are active;
     several groups critical of government policies are publicly active
Member of:
     ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, BDEAC, CAEU, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GATT, GCC,
     IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT,
     INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAPEC,
     OIC, OPEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
     Ambassador MUHAMMAD al-Sabah al-Salim al-Sabah
chancery:
     2940 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:
     (202) 966-0702
FAX:
     (202) 966-0517
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
     Ambassador-designate Ryan CROCKER
embassy:
     Bneid al-Gar (opposite the Kuwait International Hotel), Kuwait City
mailing address:
     P.O. Box 77 SAFAT, 13001 SAFAT, Kuwait; Unit 69000, Kuwait; APO AE
     09880-9000
telephone:
     [965] 242-4151 through 4159
FAX:
     [956] 244-2855
Flag:
     three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a
     black trapezoid based on the hoist side


                                  Economy




Overview:
     Kuwait is a small and relatively open economy with proven crude oil
     reserves of about 94 billion barrels - 10% of world reserves. Kuwait
     has rebuilt its war-ravaged petroleum sector; its crude oil production
     reached at least 2.0 million barrels per day by the end of 1993. The
     government ran a sizable fiscal deficit in 1993. Petroleum accounts
     for nearly half of GDP and 90% of export and government revenues.
National product:
     GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $25.7 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
     15% (1993 est.)
National product per capita:
     $15,100 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
     3% (1993)
Unemployment rate:
     NEGL% (1992 est.)
Budget:
revenues:
     $9 billion
expenditures:
     $13 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY93)
Exports:
     $10.5 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
     oil
partners:
     France 16%, Italy 15%, Japan 12%, UK 11%
Imports:
     $6 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
     food, construction materials, vehicles and parts, clothing
partners:
     US 35%, Japan 12%, UK 9%, Canada 9%
External debt:
     $7.2 billion (December 1989 est.)
note:
     external debt has grown substantially in 1991 and 1992 to pay for
     restoration of war damage
Industrial production:
     growth rate NA%; accounts for NA% of GDP
Electricity:
capacity:
     6,873,000 kW available out of 7,398,000 kW due to Persian Gulf war
production:
     12.264 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
     8,890 kWh (1992)
Industries:
     petroleum, petrochemicals, desalination, food processing, building
     materials, salt, construction
Agriculture:
     practically none; dependent on imports for food; about 75% of potable
     water must be distilled or imported




Economic aid:
donor:
     pledged bilateral aid to less developed countries (1979-89), $18.3
     billion
Currency:
     1 Kuwaiti dinar (KD) = 1,000 fils
Exchange rates:
     Kuwaiti dinars (KD) per US$1 - 0.2982 (January 1994), 0.3017 (1993),
     0.2934 (1992), 0.2843 (1991), 0.2915 (1990), 0.2937 (1989)
Fiscal year:
     1 July - 30 June


                              Communications


Railroads:
     none
Highways:
total:
     3,900 km
paved:
     bituminous 3,000 km
unpaved:
     gravel, sand, earth 900 km
Pipelines:
     crude oil 877 km; petroleum products 40 km; natural gas 165 km
Ports:
     Ash Shu'aybah, Ash Shuwaykh, Mina' al Ahmadi, Mina' 'Abd Allah, Mina'
     Su'ud
Merchant marine:
     46 ships (1,000 GRT or over), totaling 2,153,693 GRT/3,561,568 DWT,
     cargo 10, container 2, liquefied gas 7, livestock carrier 4, oil
     tanker 23
Airports:
total:
     7
usable:
     4
with permanent-surface runways:
     4
with runways over 3,659 m:
     0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
     4
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
     0
Telecommunications:
     civil network suffered extensive damage as a result of the Gulf war
     and reconstruction is still under way with some restored international
     and domestic capabilities; broadcast stations - 3 AM, 0 FM, 3 TV;
     satellite earth stations - destroyed during Gulf war and not rebuilt
     yet; temporary mobile satellite ground stations provide international
     telecommunications; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Saudi
     Arabia; service to Iraq is nonoperational




                              Defense Forces


Branches:
     Army, Navy, Air Force, National Police Force, National Guard
Manpower availability:
     males age 15-49 537,696; fit for military service 321,767; reach
     military age (18) annually 15,354 (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures:
     exchange rate conversion - $2.5 billion, 7.3% of GDP (FY92/93)